The Toronto Blue Jays’ continued resolve manifested a 7-1 victory in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series on Wednesday, keeping the Kansas City Royals close as the series shifts back to Kauffman Stadium.
The Blue Jays are now 4-0 in elimination games this postseason and have outscored opponents 26-9 in those contests—exhibiting an awakened offense when pushed to the brink. But the challenge elevates as they return to Kansas City, where they were limited to a combined three runs in a pair of losses to open the series.
As the best-of-seven series hits the final stretch, both teams get back their top starters on full rest, giving ALCS audiences a tasty treat as the World Series looms.
Blue Jays vs. Royals: Game 6
When: Friday, Oct. 23, at 8:07 p.m. ET
Where: Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri
TV: Fox Sports 1 / Sportsnet
Live Stream: Fox Sports Go
Odds (via Odds Shark): Toronto -1.5
Tickets: ScoreBig.com
Preview
Pitching Matchup: David Price (Blue Jays) vs. Yordano Ventura (Royals)
Thanks to the Blue Jays’ dominating win in Game 5, Price was spared from being used out of the bullpen. He will start Game 6 hoping to keep the season alive but, perhaps more chiefly, also to erase his recent playoff woes.
Anyone who has remotely followed the postseason knows of Price’s postseason struggles. He's 0-7 with a 5.44 ERA in seven career playoff starts, capped by a meltdown in Game 2 in which he retired a Toronto-record 18 straight batters before allowing five runs in the seventh in the Blue Jays’ 6-3 loss.
No one is more aware of his shortfalls than Price, as he indicated shortly after the Game 2 debacle:
A loss with Price at the helm would be a crushing blow to a Blue Jays front office that traded three pitchers for the star lefty before the non-waiver trade deadline with expectations that he could immediately solidify a championship rotation.
General manager Alex Anthopoulos can’t confidently say, "Hey, there’s always next year," on the Cy Young Award candidate, as he’s an impending free agent likely to command a $200 million (or more) contract this offseason—likely outside Toronto’s budget.
Opposite Price will be the Royals’ hard-hurling Yordano Ventura, who’s had an equally, if not more, taxing postseason. Ventura has allowed nine earned runs in 12.1 innings pitched with a .308 average against. The Royals have won two of his three starts, though one thanks to Price’s meltdown in Game 2.
An ALCS-clinching win would continue adding to what’s been a topsy-turvy season for the 24-year-old righty. Ventura was the Opening Day starter, demoted to Triple-A in July, recalled a day later, then churned out eight straight starts without a loss and now finds himself in the midst of a playoff funk.
Toronto manager John Gibbons is optimistic Ventura’s ebb and flow could continue, per Jeff Rosen of the Toronto Star:
Ventura looked settled for most of Game 2 but exited after allowing two Blue Jays runs in the sixth and widened the Royals’ deficit to 3-0. He went 0-1 with a 7.71 ERA against the Houston Astros in the American League Division Series.
Given Toronto’s ability to score at will, the Royals need Ventura to return to his 2014 form in which he led Kansas City to four wins in four starts while limiting batters to a .231/.297/.341 slash line.
Per KMBC 9 News Kansas City, Royals manager Ned Yost told reporters he has confidence in Ventura’s ability but that the lefty's success will be dictated by command of his second-tier pitches.
He keeps us in the game. In these types of games, you feel real good with him going even though he’s a young guy. He’s got a lot of confidence in his abilities. He’s got a lot of confidence in his stuff. You know the moment is not going to overwhelm him. He’s gotten past all that. He’s learned some great lessons this year about how to handle adversity and how to be a No. 1 guy. We saw it last year during the playoffs. He just kind of found a way to take his game to just a little bit of a different level. We expect him to do that [in Game 6].
There’s no doubting Ventura’s velocity, which consistently reaches the high 90s, per MLB.com's Richard Justice, but one of his ongoing weaknesses has been in-game longevity, as Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports noted:
Prediction
Before the series was even underway, most believed it would feature two trips to Kansas City. These teams battled for the AL’s top seed through the final week of the season, and now the Royals can capitalize by closing the series in their backyard.
As raucous as the crowd was in Toronto, KC has been the better team at home and is going for its fifth straight playoff win at Kauffman Stadium. Yost likes his club's chances with two opportunities to close the series, as he told reporters, per KMBC 9 News Kansas City:
If this series has shown anything, it’s that there’s no shortage of offense and that overcoming deficits has been a challenge. Both teams are combining to average 13.2 runs per game, and the team with the lead after the third inning—yes, there have been runs that early in each contest—has won four of the five games.
Expect these trends to continue before an AL champion is crowned this weekend.
Price will overcome his one-inning blemish in Game 2 and finally secure his first postseason victory as a starter but not without a few minor hiccups along the way. The Blue Jays may possess what’s been a back-and-forth momentum exchange, but the Royals offense won’t shy.
The Blue Jays have been battle-tested all October and have confidently shook adversity’s hand at every step. Against a sporadic Ventura, Toronto will take and build upon an early lead to give Price a comfortable cushion and push the ALCS to an all-deciding Game 7.
Game 6 Prediction: Blue Jays 6, Royals 4
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